8^th News letter.

2^nd News Letter from Cairns.

 

Saturday 13^th June.  It was time for another shopping fix and what better way to spend an afternoon than in camping stores. Well it makes perfect sense given our new life style.  What we had planned was to start gathering the things together for our trip to Cape York, essentials such as tent poles, solar shower, collapsible toaster and of course some 4WD cloths for Elizabeth.  No I don’t have enough of that kind of clothing, since you ask!  I picked up a couple of tops made of Bamboo and Cotton which have a great feel to them and appear to be very practical, so that makes sense to me.  Arriving back at the caravan park we discovered we had new neighbors John and June who come from South Australia, a lovely couple that we hope to catch up with again in our travels. 

 

Traveling does not afford me to be a recluse especially when one’s partner is head of the meet and greet committee for every park we have been in, he makes it really difficult to hide in the van and not come out to meet and greet particularly when he is calling out ‘come out Elizabeth and meet out new neighbors’.  I do pretend that I can’t hear him but he does persist even coming and opening the door (just in case I really didn’t hear him).  The notion that Ken would think that I have anything in common with or want on any level to know said neighbor always fascinates me.  He never gives up hope that underneath my grumpy exterior is a nice person, poor soul, very delusional.

 

Sunday 14^th  we were fortunate enough to be invited to Ken’s ex sister-in-law Robyn’s house for lunch at Cliffton Beach.  It was also a chance to catch up with Ken’s niece Samantha, her husband and their two children, so it was very much a family day.  Robyn went to no end of trouble to produce a wonderful array of food, which was deeply appreciated by Ken and my dear self.  Thanks again Robyn.  

 

Monday 15^th An appointment with the vet took priority to other activities for that day.  Wendal had his vaccinations, tummy clipped, bottom clipped, nails trimmed and dare I mention worming.  How rude of me to mention such a delicate subject, sorry Wendal. He managed to sail through it all with his usual good grace and refinement, after all some things just have to be tolerated in life.  I also had a visit with a GP and shared with her just some of the many joys of living in such close quarters with one’s life partner. I asked her for any kind of drug she could supply me, in order to ‘HOLD MY TONGUE’.  She did afford me 45mins of her time and probably rang a help centre after I left, but hey, I thought it was 45min well spent and felt so much better after our talk.  Fortunately for me Robyn suggested she and I do lunch and chose a lovely restaurant at Palm Cove, meanwhile Ken and Warwick, Robyn’s husband, enjoyed a fine repast at Trinity Beach.  All in all a lovely day was had by both of us.  Wendal finally forgave us for taking him to the vet and decided that sulking was probably not his best option. 

 

Tuesday 16^th we played tourist for the day and decided to take the Sky rail up the mountain to Kuranda and returned by the Scenic Railway.   The Sky rail was wonderful and is certainly a fine example of modern engineering.  A gondolier glided us up the steep coastal range over beautiful lush rain forest to the summit, where we were able to exit at Red Peak and experience a mountain top walk.  Back to the gondolier and down the other side to a visibly different perspective of dryer country but still tropical.  Another stop at Barron Falls and an opportunity to see Barron Gorge, steeped in history re the Hydro Electric Power Station, after reading about some of the experiences these men had, it’s a wonder this country was ever conquered.  Continuing on to Kuranda, with its well known tourist railway station, we enjoyed lunch at the old Karanda Hotel, being one of the towns many icons.  The Kuranda markets, proved a place of entertainment and appears to cater for many diverse needs including a hat each for us.   The Scenic Railway trip is something which every tourist, particularly ones with interest in our history should not miss.   Building a railway across and through this rugged tropical range, with the knowledge and skills they had at the time, makes me ponder at the fiber of the people who built this country. 

 

Wednesday 17^th we left the van about 11.30am and headed up The Captain Cook Highway to Port Douglas.  A lovely town which has the same ambiance as Noosa, built for the tourist.  I immediately showed interest in shopping and at Ken’s suggestion he headed for the marina to ‘look at boats’ while I scanned the boutiques for a little something.  Eventually I did find some tops and a pair of shorts that I felt would be handy in my new life style without breaking the bank. We continued on to Mossman and visited Mossman Gorge National Park, with its dense lush tropical foliage and crystal clear waters brimming with fish. Boardwalks and well maintained tails made it easy to access the river. A truly enchanting beautiful place. Lots of lovely photos were taken. Back to the car we continued along to Wonga Beach where we looked up our new friends and ex neighbors, John and June to find out how they were enjoying their new location.

 

Thursday. 18^th met our friends Paul and Marion for lunch at a restaurant in the Cairns Marina precinct.  We ordered Fish and Chips all around and had a most enjoyable time.  After lunch we visited every information centre we could find to seek information on Cape York with particular interest in the state liquor laws, as we have been informed they are very strict about liquor on Aboriginal reservations and we are sure reserves will be part of our experience. Eventually we got the information we wanted and you will all be relieved to know not one of our team has to go through Alcohol withdrawals.

 

Friday 19^th another laid back day, cleaned the car, caravan, did washing and eventually drove to Barron Gorge Power Station to find it had closed 10min earlier.  Not surprised I hear you say, well from our perspective it was only 4pm and our day was just kicking in.  Well, we decided to go shopping instead and this time it was to Bunnings Hardware.  No I am not going to tell you what we bought and what bargains we found because I would be lying, suffice to say we were not long there.

 

Saturday 20^th Off to DFO (Direct Factory Outlet) in Westcourt where we purchased a soft bag as a second suitcase for our trip back to Brisbane.  I did try on a lovely White T shirt in the POLO shop, with fifty percent off but they only seemed to have sizes that would fit someone suffering from anorexia or myself when I was 18 years of age.  Unfortunately the more mature stomach does not fit well inside a slim fitting skimpy T Shirt.  I decided they just don’t make cloths the way they used to anymore.

 

Sunday 21^st.  Another late start in getting away from the cave (caravan), but not because we were in any way wasteful of our time, nay nay, we always seem to be busy doing things and yet at the end of the day WE ARE ALWAYS LATER THAN WE HAD PLANNED.  Oh how surprising I hear you say!   We did however allow ourselves enough time to re visited Barron Gorge Power Station and thoroughly enjoyed the experience and also gleaned a lot of informative.  Next stop was Crystal Cascades, which is located in the National Forest south of Barron Falls National Park.  Another lovely place well worth a visit, unfortunately the last part of the walk was blocked off to the public, not sure of the reason however do not be deterred because it is worth the effort.   Along the walk Ken uttered the words ‘Oh shit’, on inquiry one discovered that he had left his new hat at our last location ‘Barron Gorge Power Station’ on a chair in front of the seat he was sitting in.   A hasty retreat from said peaceful location, and a quick trip back to said Gorge.  A very nice security officer was located after hours and hat was returned.  Good news because it is a really nice hat.  This is our last night with our little man MR WENDAL for 5 whole weeks.  I will miss him and feel really awful that we are putting him in care while we are away.   Have a great holiday Wendal.

 

Monday 29^th We are headed up the mountain to deliver Wendal to Julie the owner of The Cat Resort at Kuranda and then on to Walkamin caravan park where we plan on staying for two nights.  We are leaving the van and car at Walkamin until our return from Brisbane on the 7^th July.  We are hoping to catch up with as many of you lovely people as we can on our return to Brisbane/Sunshine Coast.  Expect a phone call and if not phone us. 

 

Hope this finds you well and happy.   Your friend, Elizabeth.

 

 

 

 

 

Cairns  Monday June 15^th 2009

 

We at last have made it to Cairns and as always when I am in this city I have very good feelings about being here.  It’s possibly the rich lush vegetation that is so much a part of this city, plus the beautiful mountains that form a backdrop to the aqua ocean.  The gardens are so rich and vivid in their colour and variety of plant life.  We have settled into Lake Placid Caravan Park, which has turned out to be a very busy place to rest at the end of the day.   They are small sites with very close neighbors, however we were able to chosen a site that affords us just a wee bit more privacy. Going back to my last newsletter I closed as we were leaving Townsville and heading north.  We have had a busy time since Townsville so I am well overdue with my update.

 

Thursday 28^th after leaving Townsville we headed North about 43k to Toomulla Beach a ‘free park’ by the ocean.  We were surprised at how many other people had also read about the place and as we were to learn later, how many people seasonally return to camp in this spot each year.  At this point I want to say how impressed I am with Townsville Council at their care of these ‘free parks’. Particularly the amenity blocks which were very clean and well cared fore. The amenity blocks are very basic, comprising male and female flushing commodes with an outside cold shower. 

 

Friday 29^th we discovered Bushy Parker Park (another ‘free park’) just 12k north of Toomulla Beach at Rollingstone. A lovely large spacious tranquil park with Ghost Gums and many rich green tropical natives, providing shade for the Grey Nomad. This park has a lovely creek running through and many brave people were enjoying a swim in ‘croc free’ water.  The park also offered water taps on site, which made our stay much more pleasurable. Always great to have plenty of water! We met many interesting people in our stay, perhaps none more interesting than a lady who goes by the name of Dell.  I am guessing at Dell’s age, at somewhere between 60 and 65 years, a very well preserved and elegant soul who has been living in her Jayco motor home for some 8 years.  She travels up and down the coast and visits her many friends, but mostly she is content to stay in nature with her only constant companion, Skye, a Blue Heeler (dog). She is a woman who is enjoying life immensely and as I observed, has mastered the art of working a campground with her charm and warmth, not getting to close but just close enough to receive the companionship she needs.  A very interesting soul in this age and time. We spent three nights in this lovely place which included Ken’s birthday on Saturday 30^th.

 

Monday 1^st June we found ourselves in Ingham replenishing our supplies and posting off one of the lovely Teddies we had bought in Townsville for Ken’s niece on the occasion of the birth of her baby girl. Wanting to move further along we headed to Cardwell and booked into Beachcomber Tourist Park. It was raining when we arrived so we were not particular about the spot that we selected, however in the light of day we realized our mistake at parking under a huge fragile tree and quickly moved. 

 

Tuesday 2^nd another day of relaxing, it’s a hard life as we are discovering but the truth is someone has to do it.  Oh, alright I am being smart! I can hear all my hardworking friends drawing in breath at that remark.  Cardwell was not selected as a port of call because of its infinite beauty, but because it offers ferry access to Hinchenbrook Island. In 1987, aboard “Harry Flashman”, Ken and I enjoyed a stay at Zoe Bay and hiked to Mulligan Falls, the island’s most beautiful waterfall, with its large clear water pools and super size fish.  As a result we were anxious to revisit the island and we were not disappointed.

 

Wednesday 3^rd we got up early so as not to miss the ferry departure at 8.30am.  There were 17 passengers on our day’s adventure. Unfortunately it was cloudy with a few rainsqualls, however the beauty of Hinchenbrook Island managed to shine through the gloom and lift all our spirits with its magnitude and imposing presence.  Our first port of call was Creek No 7, a boat trip through the mangroves, then a walk along Ramsay mangrove boardwalk to Ramsay Bay Beach,  by then the cloud had disappeared, revealing clear sky.  Looking at the rich life which exists in the mangroves is interesting in itself, however, arriving on Ramsay Beach in its isolation was a call for reflection.  We were encouraged to enter the beach via a track that runs parallel to the beach, some 1 to 1.5 kilometer long. This is when THE ROSS-CONLEYS ran a muck.  As Ken and I were walking along the track Ken decided to take a wee break and wondered off saying he would catch up. Meanwhile I joined two other ladies who strolled by and we proceeded to walk the track to the beach.  After quite some time standing on the beach and still no appearance of my belovered, I became concerned and headed back along the track to try and find him.  The troops were now gathering for our exit from the Beach and still no appearance of Ken.  With no phone reception and no sightings, I alerted the troop leader of my concerns stating  “he had never done anything like this before”, a statement I now regret, knowing full well he wonders off the track when a whim takes hold of him.  Trusty Troop leader starts backtracking to find the lost Ken, when out he comes stating “he was never lost” and that he had changed his mind and backtracked along the beach, “ could we not see him?”  I GESS THERE IS ONE IN EVERY GROUP.  NOT HAPPY JOYCE!

 

The next part of the trip was less eventful, or should I say less stressful on my part because by this time I had decided that if he got lost ‘I WAS NOT GOING TO RAISE THE ALARM’ and ‘what a pity he doesn’t have insurance’. We all got dropped off at Macushla Beach, a camping spot to start our 5.3km trek through the National Park to the lodge.  This was a challenging walk and I enjoyed the company of a number of different people all moving at a similar pace to my dear self, however we were all relieved to arrive at the lodge for a long awaited drink.  This time I left Ken to walk with Miss Green,(not her real name) another nature lover who enjoys and explores every leaf and every tweeting bird on the Island and may I add, whose pace reminded me of a snail on a mission.  I would recommend Hinchenbrook Island to anyone who loves nature, it’s a special place on this planet, but do go with a like minded walker other wise frustration could turn the day a wee bit sour for one. On our way back to the mainland I was thrilled to receive a call from Geordie, to say he had arrived home from Japan safe and sound.

 

Thursday 4^th June, heading out again, we traveled to Tully and once again I was drawn to the supermarket for yet more supplies.  This day we ended up in a small town called Japoonvale at Upper Liverpool Creek. A very small but pretty spot by a swift flowing creek, which was way too cold to swim in.  From about lunchtime onwards I had started to get text messages from my friend Moira informing me about my niece’s progress, re the birth of her baby.  By 9pm the news came through that both mother and baby were well and grandma Moira was very relieved.  What a great day.

 

Friday 5^th with the knowledge the long-weekend was upon us, we felt the urgency to book in somewhere and stay put for a while.   We contacted our friends Paul and Marion who were staying in Walkamin, a small town on the tablelands west of Cairns.  They assured us there was room at the inn so to speak, so we started out heading west with the understanding that there we many points of interest along the way.   Walkamin was roughly two, maybe three hours away, so we took our time enjoying the many stops on route, such as  Millaa Millaa Falls, etc. Walkamin Caravan Park as we were to discover is a unique park, so far in our travels. It’s a large park owned and operated by a lady called Lucy, a non-conventional soul who appears to be enjoying life meeting and greeting people in her park.  The park has a large communal area designed on a homestead theme, with an open fire, lounge chairs, tables and chairs and even books and DVDs one can borrow.  There is also a large Jig Saw puzzle that is continuously on the go.  The communal area appears to be a great gathering place for people who enjoy getting together with one another.  My favorite thing about the park is the Orange and Mandarin trees providing an abundance of fruit which Lucy suggests everyone should share in. Thank god I brought my Juicer, it’s the most beautiful fruit I have tasted in a long time.  But wait, I also discovered a huge passion fruit vine laded with fruit and baby tomatoes and fresh herbs just outside our van. Yes, what a treasure!!

 

Saturday 6^th, Paul and Marion suggested a trip to Granite Gorge. So we packed a lunch and headed west to the sight.  A great experience although hard work for we women climbing over some pretty challenging rocks or boulders which in places we found ourselves jumping from one to another. Not good at our age.  Men do have their place in helping from time to time and I am very grateful to both Ken and Paul for their assistance. Thanks guys.

 

Sunday 7^th was a rest day for us, so we recharged batteries and cleaned our cave ready for more adventures on Monday when we drove to Emerald Creek Falls, a beautiful place at the end of a long steep walk. Then on to Davies Creek Falls where we had our lunch sitting by a beautiful icy cold clear running stream. Both falls are worth a visit, each very different, but stand alone in their beauty.

 

Tuesday 9^th Ken and I drove to Lake Tinaroo and experienced yet again the beauty of nature and realized we were not immune to just how beautiful and diverse this country is.  Wednesday we decided it was time to check out catteries to find a suitable holiday resort for our Wendal while we are away in both Brisbane and at Cape York.  They certainly come in different packages, as we were about to find out. 

 

Thursday 11^th Ken took himself sailing on Lake Tinaroo and as I am told had a wonderful time.  I also had a wonderful time alone, doing my thing, which turned out to be cooking up a storm.   There is nothing like a bit of alone time, good for the soul.

 

Friday 12^th, it was time to leave the tablelands and head for the city, which in this case is Cairns.  On our way we had to drive through Kuranda, a village 25km northwest of Cairns.  I had an appointment with a lady called Julie, a ‘cat whisperer’ who runs a cattery on the mountain.  After meeting her and checking out her establishment we decided Wendal would be in good hands with Julie in our absence, so we booked him in for a five-week stay, beginning Monday the 22nd. Driving down the mountain we found our way to our new home for the next week or so, Lake Placid Caravan Park. 

 

I have decided to stop this chapter here although we have had some lovely experiences in our visit to this city so far, would prefer to leave the details for my next news letter.  I am sorry this has taken so long to get this down in words and will try to be more diligent with my next news letter which basically I should start straight away in order for it to be current.  I hope this finds you all well and extremely happy and healthy.

 

Kind Regards to you all.  Elizabeth.